It’s 1944, and Libby Clark is a research scientist at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, one of two sites (along with Los Alamos) where top-secret work is being done on the Manhattan Project. In this second novel in the series (following Scandal in the Secret City, 2014), the cousin of one of Libby’s colleagues has been charged with treason. But Libby’s colleague says it’s a trumped-up charge: his cousin, Frannie Snowden, a switchboard operator, merely did a favor for a friend. Was it Frannie’s fault that her friend was an enemy spy? To clear Frannie’s name, Libby must prove one of her fellow scientists is the traitor. Briskly paced and smartly written, the book pairs nicely with other novels dealing with Manhattan Project treachery (especially Martin Cruz Smith’s Stallion Gate, 1986) and with similar series starring female protagonists in WWII (Sarah R. Shaber’s Louise Pearlie series and Susan Elia MacNeal’s Maggie Hope series).

About

Diane Fanning is the author of 14 true crime books, 10 mystery novels and has been featured in 3 anthology collections. She has appeared on numerous television shows, including 48 hours, 20/20 and The Today Show. She lives in Bedford, Virginia with her husband and their dog, a sheltie named Emmitt Otter.